December, 2011:

ITER Organization’s Krista Dulon gives an overview of how the organisation is paving the way for fusion as a viable and virtually limitless energy source

In a global context of rising oil and gas prices, decreased accessibility to low-cost fossil fuel sources, and an estimated three-fold increase in world energy demand by the end of this century, the ‘energy question’ finds itself propelled to the front of the stage. How will we supply this new energy, and how can we do so without adding dangerously to atmospheric greenhouse gases?

Fusion scientists believe that they can make an important contribution to the sustainable energy mix of the future. Fusion, the nuclear reaction that powers the sun and the stars, would provide a safe, non-carbon emitting and virtually limitless source of energy. Consequently, during next 30 years, the world will be watching the ITER project in southern France, where a consortium of nations is building the world’s largest fusion device.

A global collaboration
ITER is a large-scale scientific experiment intended to prove the viability of fusion as an energy source, and to collect the data necessary for the design and subsequent operation of the first electricity producing fusion power plant. Six nations plus Europe have agreed to pool their financial and scientific resources to realise this unique research project; and although it will never produce electricity, it will take fusion to the point where industrial applications can be designed.

The project was the fruit of a 1985 summit in Geneva between Soviet Secretary General Mikhail Gorbachev and US President Ronald Reagan, during which the leaders agreed to cooperate to develop fusion as a ‘source of energy…for the benefit of all mankind’. The design for a large, international fusion facility was collaboratively developed by the Soviet Union, the US, the EU and Japan from 1988 to 2001, and this has provided the basis for the project that is taking shape today.

The members of the project are: China, the EU, India, Japan, Korea, Russia and the US, each of whom contribute components to the machine and share in the management aspects of the project, including scientific collaboration, finance, staffing and auditing. ITER is staffed by approximately 500 people from the member communities, and as nearly as many contractors. Domestic agencies located in each ITER member country organise procurement activities and conclude contracts with industry.

Construction of the ITER scientific buildings began in 2010. Over the next eight years, the facilities will be erected; components shipped from all around the world will be assembled into the ITER device; and a commissioning and testing phase will ensue. The operational campaign will begin with First Plasma in 2019, followed by 20 years of physics experiments. The project is truly an international endeavour. The seven members together represent over half of the world’s population and 80% of the world’s GDP. The ITER tokamak will be the flagship device of the world fusion programme.

Fusion: at work in the stars
Fusion is one of nature’s most spectacular achievements. Billions and billions of fusion furnaces, the sun among them, are flaring in the universe, creating light and energy. Some 70 years ago, scientists discovered the physics behind this wonder: the sun and stars transmute matter, tirelessly transforming hydrogen nuclei into helium atoms and releasing huge amounts of energy in the process.

In the sun, fusion reactions take place in a context of enormous gravitational pressure and very high temperature (15 million degrees Celsius) – conditions that enable the natural electrostatic repulsion that exists between the positive charges of two nuclei to be overcome. The fusion of two light hydrogen atoms (H-H) produces a heavier element, helium. The mass of the resulting helium atom is not the exact sum of the two initial atoms, however, as some mass has been lost and great amounts of energy have been gained. This is what Einstein’s formula E=mc² describes: the tiny amount of lost mass (m), multiplied by the square of the speed of light (c²), results in a very large figure (E), which is the amount of energy created by a fusion reaction.

Capturing fusion on Earth
With the understanding of the process of celestial fusion came the ambition to reproduce, here on Earth, what was happening in the stars. The first fusion experiments in the 1930s were followed by the establishment of fusion physics laboratories in nearly every industrialised nation. By the mid-1950s ‘fusion machines’ of one kind or another were operating in the Soviet Union, the UK, the US, France, Germany and Japan. A breakthrough occurred in 1968 in the Soviet Union where, by using a doughnut-shaped magnetic confinement device called a tokamak, researchers were able to achieve temperature levels and plasma confinement times – two of the main criteria for achieving fusion – that had never before been attained. The tokamak became the dominant concept in fusion research, and such devices multiplied across the globe.

Experimentation allows physicists to identify the most promising combination of elements to reproduce fusion in the laboratory: the reaction between the two hydrogen (H) isotopes deuterium (D) and tritium (T). The D-T fusion reaction produces the highest energy gain at the ‘lowest’ temperatures, nevertheless still requiring temperatures of 150,000,000°C – 10 times higher than the H-H reaction occurring at the sun’s core. At these extreme temperatures, electrons are separated from nuclei and a gas becomes plasma – a hot, electrically charged gas. In a fusion device – as in a star – plasmas provide the environment in which light elements can fuse and yield energy. The D-T fusion produces one helium nuclei, one neutron and energy.

To achieve net fusion power in a D-T reactor such as a tokamak, the three conditions of the fusion triple product must be fulfilled:
•A very high temperature (greater than 100 million degrees Celsius);
•Plasma particle density of at least 10²² particles per cubic metre; and
•An energy confinement time – the time in which the plasma is maintained at a temperature above the critical ignition temperature – for the reactor on the order of one second.

From the 1950s onwards, it has been clear that mastering fusion would require the marshalling of the creative forces, technological skills, and financial resources of the international community. A first step in this direction was the Joint European Torus (JET) in Culham, UK, which has been in operation since 1983. In 1991, the JET Tokamak achieved the world’s first controlled release of fusion power, and steady progress has since been made in such devices around the world. The Tore Supra Tokamak (France) holds the record for the longest plasma duration time of any tokamak: six minutes and 30 seconds. The Japanese JT-60, meanwhile, achieved the highest value of fusion triple product of any device to date, and US fusion installations have reached temperatures of several hundred million degrees Celsius.

To yield more energy from fusion than has been invested to heat the plasma, it must be held at this temperature for some minimum length of time. Scaling laws predict that the larger the plasma volume, the better the results. The ITER tokamak chamber will be twice as large as any previous tokamak, with a plasma volume of 830m3. It is designed to produce 10 times the energy that is required to make the plasma: 500MW of fusion power for 50MW of input power (Q&#8805;10). Although ITER will not convert this power to electricity, it will be an important demonstration of the potential of fusion.

One of the tasks awaiting ITER is to explore fully the properties of super-hot plasmas and their behaviour during the long pulses of fusion power the machine will enable. The challenge will be very great. ITER’s plasma pulses will be of a much longer duration than those achieved in other devices, creating intense material stress. It will be used to test and validate advanced materials and key technologies for the industrial fusion power plants of the future.

Wind farm operators are on course to earn up to £10 million this year for turning off their turbines.

he rules meant that some renewable energy companies were paid more to switch off their turbines than they would have received from ordinary operations Photo: ALAMY

Official figures disclosed that 17 operators were paid almost £7 million for shutting down their farms on almost 40 ­occasions between January and mid-September. Continuing to make payments at that rate would lead to householders paying out £9.9 million in 2011 for operators to disconnect their turbines from the National Grid.

The scale of the payments triggered a review of the rules on so-called constraint payments. The payments are made when too much electricity floods the grid, with the network unable to absorb any excess power generated. The money is ultimately added on to household bills and paid for by consumers.

Last year, only £176,788 of such payments were made, but changes in the way the National Grid, which supplies energy to retail companies, “balances” the electricity network have meant a huge expansion in their use.

The rules meant that some renewable energy companies were paid more to switch off their turbines than they would have received from ordinary operations.

In September, it was disclosed that £1.2 million would go to a Norwegian company that owned 60 turbines in the Scottish Borders, thanks to a period of unusually high wind during the spring. Because of the rising cost, the National Grid “balancing” system could now be overhauled to reduce the use of constraint payments

Kirk Sorensen is the founder of Flibe Energy. He has been prospecting in libraries for years to learn more about a path not taken (yet). He is convinced that the way forward for energy in the United States and around the world is the molten salt thorium reactor that can produce an almost unlimited amount of power for millennia.

The concept works by starting with an initial charge of a fissile material (U-233, U-235 or Pu-239) and fissioning that in the presence of fertile thorium 232. One of the 2.5 (or so) neutrons produced by fission causes another fission, one converts Th-232 into U-233. The new U-233 is then available to fission to produce heat, neutrons and more U-233 from a small additional amount of thorium. The amount of thorium required to provide all of the energy an American would need for her entire life can fit into the palm of her hand.

Kirk gave a Google Tech talk on December 16, 2011 and shared an explanation of the politics associated with deciding to press forward with the sodium cooled fast breeder reactor as the only national program. That decision resulted in defunding and cancellation of the molten salt thorium breeder and contributed to a decision to remove Alvin Weinberg from his position as the Director of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

My analysis of the same events includes a wider range of actors, puts some blame on the antinuclear industry, and points to the underlying financial support for all who oppose nuclear energy that is available from the coal, oil and gas establishment, a group for whom the dream of unlimited amounts of clean power is a nightmare of epic proportions.

Perhaps I will have an opportunity in the not too distant future to travel back to Mountain View to share my version of the story about why we have not yet developed molten salt breeder reactors. I would probably expand my topic to include a discussion of some of the reasons why the US has not yet developed the same kind of incredibly creative nuclear energy industry as we have the high tech, microprocessor based industry that made Silicon Valley such a prosperous and dynamic place to live and work.

After all, when it comes to energy, Atom’s Law describes the only innovation curve with any kind of similarity to the curve that Gordon Moore sketched out for the pace of improving transistor-based microprocessors.

Waste management is a critical European issue. Each year, Europe produces around 3 billion tonnes of waste – equivalent to 6 tonnes per person. Currently, 67% is either sent to landfill or incinerated. Neither of these is a popular means of dealing with waste.

Europe’s waste management challenges are moving to a critical stage with a pressing need for alternative advanced technologies and the required framework to drive their adoption and encourage commercial support. Much of the emphasis to date has been on producing less waste – recycling more and consuming less. These are laudable aims, and must be strongly supported – but recycling is not the complete answer especially as Europe’s population rises.

There are UK and EU regulatory frameworks to encourage more sustainable waste management. Costly disincentives to waste – among them the EU Landfill Directive – make disposing of waste an increasingly expensive process.

There is increasing recognition amongst policy makers that innovative advanced conversion technologies (ACTs) can help meet renewable energy targets and improve energy security whilst also contributing to Europe’s vision for a zero waste economy. The potential for waste to be treated as a resource is an opportunity that needs to be realised, and the requirement for sustainable waste to energy solutions has never been greater.

Advanced Plasma Power’s Gasplasma technology is internationally patented and combines two long standing and well proven technologies (gasification and plasma treatment) to convert waste into a very clean, hydrogen-rich synthesis gas (syngas) and a vitrified recyclate product called Plasmarok.

The two products from the process, the energy-rich syngas and the Plasmarok have a variety of end uses making the technology very flexible. The syngas can be used to generate electricity directly and efficiently in gas engines or gas turbines. As fuel cell technology advances rapidly, the syngas will be capable of being used commercially in fuel cells, probably within the next five years, thereby further improving the electrical generation efficiency.

Alternatively, the syngas can be processed into synthetic natural gas (SNG) for distribution in existing gas grids or into hydrogen or liquid fuels. The Plasmarok is a very strong and stable product and has a variety of end uses in the construction industry. It can be cast into tiles, slabs or blocks or can be granulated or spun into insulation material.

A standard Gasplasma facility is sized to process around 150,000 tonnes per year of residual municipal or commercial waste, removing valuable recyclates and creating 90,000 tonnes per year of Refused Derived Fuel (RDF). The removal of recyclates at the front end and the production of a product, (Plasmarok) clearly helps to boost recycling rates significantly.

The facility fits into a relatively standard industrial warehouse unit of only some 15 metres in height with a very low exhaust. This enables the facility to be located close to towns thereby offering a community-based solution for sustainable waste management and the generation of clean, renewable, power and heat for local homes and businesses.

As Europe’s waste management challenge is tackled over the coming years, it is anticipated that governments and businesses will look increasingly for efficient technologies which can treat waste in an environmentally benign way.

New EU countries, who are behind their Western neighbours in terms of renewable energy infrastructure, are likely to start investing more heavily in sustainable waste management solutions in order to comply with tough regulations – creating a clear opportunity for clean technology companies.

Moreover, tighter regulation of waste and recycling is likely – building on the UK Government’s Waste Review and the European Commission’s Waste Hierarchy.

Currently, the UK alone sends around 40 million tonnes of waste sent tolandfill

every year and a further two billion tonnes of waste already sitting in landfill which could be mined for resources and fuel. This situation is not sustainable in the UK or across Europe, for social, cost and environmental reasons.

Ultimately, the solution will be the widespread adoption of a variety of advanced technologies and techniques. To deliver this, a transparent, supportive, consistent and above all joined-up legislativeframework is required.

It stands to reason that those advanced conversion technologies which deliver at the interface or convergence of all of the diverse regulatory objectives in respect of recycling, landfill diversion, efficient energy generation, heat recovery and local acceptability and which in addition offer a flexible platform for future applications should be preferred.

Rolf Stein is CEO of Advanced Plasma Power

www.advancedplasmapower.com

Waste management is a critical European issue. Each year, Europe produces around 3 billion tonnes of waste – equivalent to 6 tonnes per person. Currently, 67% is either sent to landfill or incinerated. Neither of these is a popular means of dealing with waste.
Europe’s waste management challenges are moving to a critical stage with a pressing need for alternative advanced technologies and the required framework to drive their adoption and encourage commercial support. Much of the emphasis to date has been on producing less waste – recycling more and consuming less. These are laudable aims, and must be strongly supported – but recycling is not the complete answer especially as Europe’s population rises.
There are UK and EU regulatory frameworks to encourage more sustainable waste management. Costly disincentives to waste – among them the EU Landfill Directive – make disposing of waste an increasingly expensive process.
There is increasing recognition amongst policy makers that innovative advanced conversion technologies (ACTs) can help meet renewable energy targets and improve energy security whilst also contributing to Europe’s vision for a zero waste economy. The potential for waste to be treated as a resource is an opportunity that needs to be realised, and the requirement for sustainable waste to energy solutions has never been greater.
Advanced Plasma Power’s Gasplasma technology is internationally patented and combines two long standing and well proven technologies (gasification and plasma treatment) to convert waste into a very clean, hydrogen-rich synthesis gas (syngas) and a vitrified recyclate product called Plasmarok.
The two products from the process, the energy-rich syngas and the Plasmarok have a variety of end uses making the technology very flexible. The syngas can be used to generate electricity directly and efficiently in gas engines or gas turbines. As fuel cell technology advances rapidly, the syngas will be capable of being used commercially in fuel cells, probably within the next five years, thereby further improving the electrical generation efficiency.
Alternatively, the syngas can be processed into synthetic natural gas (SNG) for distribution in existing gas grids or into hydrogen or liquid fuels. The Plasmarok is a very strong and stable product and has a variety of end uses in the construction industry. It can be cast into tiles, slabs or blocks or can be granulated or spun into insulation material.
A standard Gasplasma facility is sized to process around 150,000 tonnes per year of residual municipal or commercial waste, removing valuable recyclates and creating 90,000 tonnes per year of Refused Derived Fuel (RDF). The removal of recyclates at the front end and the production of a product, (Plasmarok) clearly helps to boost recycling rates significantly.
The facility fits into a relatively standard industrial warehouse unit of only some 15 metres in height with a very low exhaust. This enables the facility to be located close to towns thereby offering a community-based solution for sustainable waste management and the generation of clean, renewable, power and heat for local homes and businesses.
As Europe’s waste management challenge is tackled over the coming years, it is anticipated that governments and businesses will look increasingly for efficient technologies which can treat waste in an environmentally benign way.
New EU countries, who are behind their Western neighbours in terms of renewable energy infrastructure, are likely to start investing more heavily in sustainable waste management solutions in order to comply with tough regulations – creating a clear opportunity for clean technology companies.
Moreover, tighter regulation of waste and recycling is likely – building on the UK Government’s Waste Review and the European Commission’s Waste Hierarchy.
Currently, the UK alone sends around 40 million tonnes of waste sent tolandfillevery year and a further two billion tonnes of waste already sitting in landfill which could be mined for resources and fuel. This situation is not sustainable in the UK or across Europe, for social, cost and environmental reasons.
Ultimately, the solution will be the widespread adoption of a variety of advanced technologies and techniques. To deliver this, a transparent, supportive, consistent and above all joined-up legislativeframework is required.
It stands to reason that those advanced conversion technologies which deliver at the interface or convergence of all of the diverse regulatory objectives in respect of recycling, landfill diversion, efficient energy generation, heat recovery and local acceptability and which in addition offer a flexible platform for future applications should be preferred.
Rolf Stein is CEO of Advanced Plasma Power
www.advancedplasmapower.com

Waste management is a critical European issue. Each year, Europe produces around 3 billion tonnes of waste – equivalent to 6 tonnes per person. Currently, 67% is either sent to landfill or incinerated. Neither of these is a popular means of dealing with waste.Europe’s waste management challenges are moving to a critical stage with a pressing need for alternative advanced technologies and the required framework to drive their adoption and encourage commercial support. Much of the emphasis to date has been on producing less waste – recycling more and consuming less. These are laudable aims, and must be strongly supported – but recycling is not the complete answer especially as Europe’s population rises.There are UK and EU regulatory frameworks to encourage more sustainable waste management. Costly disincentives to waste – among them the EU Landfill Directive – make disposing of waste an increasingly expensive process.There is increasing recognition amongst policy makers that innovative advanced conversion technologies (ACTs) can help meet renewable energy targets and improve energy security whilst also contributing to Europe’s vision for a zero waste economy. The potential for waste to be treated as a resource is an opportunity that needs to be realised, and the requirement for sustainable waste to energy solutions has never been greater.Advanced Plasma Power’s Gasplasma technology is internationally patented and combines two long standing and well proven technologies (gasification and plasma treatment) to convert waste into a very clean, hydrogen-rich synthesis gas (syngas) and a vitrified recyclate product called Plasmarok.The two products from the process, the energy-rich syngas and the Plasmarok have a variety of end uses making the technology very flexible. The syngas can be used to generate electricity directly and efficiently in gas engines or gas turbines. As fuel cell technology advances rapidly, the syngas will be capable of being used commercially in fuel cells, probably within the next five years, thereby further improving the electrical generation efficiency.Alternatively, the syngas can be processed into synthetic natural gas (SNG) for distribution in existing gas grids or into hydrogen or liquid fuels. The Plasmarok is a very strong and stable product and has a variety of end uses in the construction industry. It can be cast into tiles, slabs or blocks or can be granulated or spun into insulation material.A standard Gasplasma facility is sized to process around 150,000 tonnes per year of residual municipal or commercial waste, removing valuable recyclates and creating 90,000 tonnes per year of Refused Derived Fuel (RDF). The removal of recyclates at the front end and the production of a product, (Plasmarok) clearly helps to boost recycling rates significantly.The facility fits into a relatively standard industrial warehouse unit of only some 15 metres in height with a very low exhaust. This enables the facility to be located close to towns thereby offering a community-based solution for sustainable waste management and the generation of clean, renewable, power and heat for local homes and businesses.As Europe’s waste management challenge is tackled over the coming years, it is anticipated that governments and businesses will look increasingly for efficient technologies which can treat waste in an environmentally benign way.New EU countries, who are behind their Western neighbours in terms of renewable energy infrastructure, are likely to start investing more heavily in sustainable waste management solutions in order to comply with tough regulations – creating a clear opportunity for clean technology companies.Moreover, tighter regulation of waste and recycling is likely – building on the UK Government’s Waste Review and the European Commission’s Waste Hierarchy.Currently, the UK alone sends around 40 million tonnes of waste sent tolandfillevery year and a further two billion tonnes of waste already sitting in landfill which could be mined for resources and fuel. This situation is not sustainable in the UK or across Europe, for social, cost and environmental reasons.Ultimately, the solution will be the widespread adoption of a variety of advanced technologies and techniques. To deliver this, a transparent, supportive, consistent and above all joined-up legislativeframework is required.It stands to reason that those advanced conversion technologies which deliver at the interface or convergence of all of the diverse regulatory objectives in respect of recycling, landfill diversion, efficient energy generation, heat recovery and local acceptability and which in addition offer a flexible platform for future applications should be preferred.Rolf Stein is CEO of Advanced Plasma Powerwww.advancedplasmapower.com

CHO’s demonstration facility in Morcenx, France is expected to be commissioned during 2012. In addition to its electrical output 18MW of hot water generated by the process will power a vegetable greenhouse and a wood fire drier

30 November 2011

CHO Power SAS and Sunrise Renewables are to collaborate on a project that will see four plasma gasification facilities built at UK docks to treat biowaste.

According to the companies the new facilities are to be built at ports in Hull, Barry, Sunderland and Barrow, and combined will deliver some 37.5 MW of electricity to the national grid.

CHO Power SAS is a wholly owned subsidiary of French plasma gasification technology developer, Europlasma, while SunriseRenewables is a UK based group of project developers.

Speaking to Waste Management World, Marc Lefour, head of CHO-Power development, explained that for its part in the partnership, CHO is providing the advanced gasification technology, while Sunrise Renewables is the local project developer.

As part of the role, Sunrise has secured the planning permissions for all the sites and electrical grid connections, and is currently working on finalising long term feedstock supply contracts for the sites.

According to Lefour, the waste wood feedstock that will fuel the facilities will allow them to qualify for double Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROC).

Technology

CHO said that its gasification process transforms waste into a very clean syngas using a plasma torch capable of reaching temperatures as hot as the surface of the sun. The Syngas is then cleaned and the tar removed

For the four UK port facilities this syngas will be used to power gas engine generators.

Lefour explained that because the feedstock at these facilities is to be purely biomass such as waste wood, the by product of the gasification process has the potential to be used as an agricultural fertiliser. However this will require approval from the Environment Agency.

“In a first step it can be used as aggregate for civil works, like the ashes from incineration. But here it’s from biomass, it’s pure waste wood, there should be no big issue to use these ashes.”

The company is also currently building a demonstration facility in Morcenx, France that will use its plasma gasification technology to treat 37,000 tonnes of ordinary industrial waste and 15,000 tonnes wood chips each year. The electricity generated is to be sold to EDF.

In addition, CHO’s technology is being deployed at the Enviroparks integrated waste management project in Hirwaun, Wales, which is currently at the RFQ phase.

According to Lefour the UK market holds huge potential for waste gasification technologies, and he expects more projects to follow.

Subject to the funding scheme, the first of these four facilities should be under construction by the second half of 2012

Everyone is so upset at the greed of the power companies that even chief executive candidate Henry Tang Ying-yen has jumped on the bandwagon.

The former chief secretary yesterday denounced the power supply market as uncompetitive and called for it to be opened up. That’s all very well, but how? We have created a duopoly monster that would be difficult, if not impossible, to slay without incurring serious costs to ourselves.

After a public outcry over the new tariff rises, Hongkong Electric (SEHK: 0006) and CLP Power (SEHK: 0002) made token concessions. Subsidised electricity, it seems, is an entitlement in Hong Kong. In reality, it would be better if the companies had raised them to earn the full profit of 9.99 per cent of net fixed assets, as capped by the so-called scheme of control.

That way, the bills would become so expensive that people would be forced to cut back. That in turn would help enhance energy efficiency and cause less pollution. Alas, everyone is fixated on affordable tariffs so that we can waste as much as ever.

We get the electricity market we deserve. Decades ago, we made a Faustian bargain in the form of the present scheme to get steady and reliable supply, continuous investment and facility upgrades. The result was that the companies were guaranteed double-digit profits tied to their investment in fixed assets.

In the most recent negotiations over the scheme in 2008, officials managed to cut the profit cap to single digits – well, sort of – 9.99 per cent. Because of the scheme, the companies have become so vertically integrated – owning everything from generation and distribution to supply and services – it would be tough to break them up.

Even if we managed to, we would have to compensate them again for their investments, which we have paid for already. Tang may well be right. But let’s see the devilish details before we get too excited by his headline-grabbing sound bites.

Season’s Greetings from Civic Exchange!
New Year is just round the corner. We wish you a happy 2012!
Civic Exchange would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support in the past year. We hope you enjoyed reading our regular updates and we will continue to bring you our news via newsletters, Facebook and Twitter.

Submission – Regional co-operation plan onbuilding a quality living area(30 November 2011) Civic Exchange supports the vision of the Pearl River Delta (PRD) as an “exemplar city cluster of green and quality living”. To realize this, Civic Exchange provided feedback in three broad areas, including “Overarching policy principles, process and timelines, “Dealing with conflicts and other policy tools”, and “Some possible early ‘wins’”. We also made comments on a number of specific issues. [Download submission]

An end to coal fired power plants. An end to nuclear power plants. An end to the Worlds need for oil itself. Electricity so cheap, so totally clean and so super abundant that a hydrogen/electric powered World is within our reach. Not a farfetched dream but US Patent Pending number 61/571,218. I have invented a device that is 100 times more efficient than today’s hydroelectric power generating technology. I have turned the World of Physics up-side-down making it. It is Technology so new that it doesn’t even have a classification. It is a simple, low tech answer to so many of our questions.

Are you as tired with all the goose-stepping, do as the scientists tell us to do, think as the scientists tell us to think, as I am? Can looking at the World upside-down help develop a very simple idea, too simple not to work, that can power the World in actuality? You decide.

Here you will find drawings and descriptions of my newest invention the ” Pneumatic-Electric Power

Generating System”. See if you can find the logic error in it, IF there is one that is. AFC

The purpose of this device is to generate electrical power by using the lifting power of air rising in water. My device acts like a hydroelectric power generator in that the deeper the water the more efficient the power output. But my device needs no dam or river or external water supply when an air compressor supplies the needed air.

Note: 1. An air bubble rises in water at about one (1) foot per second of time. 2. The lifting force of air rising in water is directly equal to the weight of the displaced water. Thus a one (1) cubic foot air bubble has the lifting force of one (1) cubic foot (62 pounds) of water. 3. As an air bubble rises in

water its volume increases due to a lowering of its surrounding water pressure.

The device works as follows:

The air compressor or air pump/regulator supplies the high-pressure air volume that the air pump-

regulator inserts into the air wheels air chambers. With the compressed air inside the air chambers

it begins to rise to the the surface of the water adding forces to the device. There might be hundreds of air chambers in operation simultaneously.

As this compressed air rises it expands due to the now lowering water pressure that surrounds it. The lifting power of air in water is directly related to its

volume of water displacement. As the air volume increases so too does its lifting force. The airs lifting forces will keep increasing until it reaches the

water’s surface or it is ejected from the device. These air chambers are affixed to a roller chain that is connected to wheels at both ends of

the airwheel loop, as shown. As the air chambers lift they force the wheels to rotate. This rotation is then converted into electrical power.

Then these air chambers lose their air at the top of the airwheel and, now deflated and streamlined, travel downwards to be recharged with air at the air

pump-regulator to start the cycle all over again.

Page 1: shows a simple drawing of the airwheel next to a dam. As the drawing shows air is placed

into the air chambers at the bottom and this air adds upwards force to the device at an increasing

rate until it is dumped out near the top.

Page. 2: shows a frontal view of the airwheel and demonstrates the air expansion-lifting force

increase principle. As this drawing shows with a 700 foot tall Hoover Dam elevation airwheel an

insertion of one (1) cubic foot of air (62 lbs. lifting force) will expand to twenty (20) cubic of air

(1240 lbs lifting force) as it nears the surface where it is then ejected. These now empty and

collapsed air chambers return to the bottom to be recharged with air again to continue the cycle.

Note: There is a throttle for this machine in that more air can be injected into the air chambers at the beginning of its cycle. This will end up increasing the lifting power of the air chambers at an

accelerated rate. Example: If two (2) cubic feet of air were injected into the beginning of the device

in page 2, it would start out with 124 lbs. of lifting force and be “full” (1240 lbs) half way up. This

would add many thousands of extra pounds of lifting force to the device. A pressure relief valve

ensures that the air chambers are not damaged by over inflation.

Page 3, shows a close-up of a bellows style air chamber with rotating air nozzle head that inserts the air into the air chamber through the spring-loaded valve. This drawing shows the air valve section located in the middle of the support shafts with two opposing bellows style air chambers. As the drawing shows air is inserted into the air chambers at the lowest point of the airwheels cycle. The air pump-regulator rotates and is timed to the air chambers rotation.

The POWER of AIR ( 2 pages) is comparison of power output between my airwheel and today’s Hoover Dam. As it shows, even after subtracting 30% for drag, my machine is 146 times more

efficient!

US Patent Pending (61/571,218).

In conclusion I would like to add that unlike today’s hydroelectric power plants that only use the

power of high pressure water for fraction of a second and thus only transfer power to the water turbine wheels, for a fraction of a second, my device utilizes the lifting power of air from hundreds of air chambers for many minutes as its speed is optimal at approximately one foot rise per second of time. It is a slow RPM machine but it has the potential to POWER the WORLD!

Tang was extremely silent (without a speech writer) whilst being number 2 in the Administration in his last day job.

Now he wants the number one job he is more vocal which suggests he was incompetent in his former job or basically had no say, so why would the public now believe his intentions ?

The Government negotiated and agreed binding contracts with the power companies under the Scheme of Control. The Government of which Tang was number 2, was at fault.

The contract was excessive and flawed and too beneficial to the power companies under its ‘build more, get more return’ policy.

The contracts were, however and remain, legal binding documents between the Government and the two suppliers.

It is puerile of Government to whine when the suppliers seek to obtain what they are entitled to.

In the private business world, the person or team approving and signing such a lopsided contract would have been long since fired.

Demands for opening up of market supported by chief executive candidate, who points to success of telecom break-up as outcry over price rises grows

Peter So and Cheung Chi-fai Dec 23, 2011

Chief executive candidate Henry Tang Ying-yen added his voice yesterday to the public clamour against electricity price rises, calling for the power duopoly to be opened to competition.

“In the long run, Hong Kong should introduce competition [into the market],” Tang said during a radio interview.

“We could consider breaking the power supply into two different markets, for generation and distribution. On this, we have the example of the opening up of the telecom market.”

Asked again about the electricity tariff rises at a public forum organised by the Liberal Party, Tang said: “It is the responsibility of the next administration to come up with a better agreement [with power companies] so that the tariff can be more reasonable.”

The government opened up the telecommunications market in 1995 and paid Hong Kong Telecom HK$6.7 billion to terminate its exclusive licence in 1998, eight years earlier than scheduled. That change allowed more operators to enter the market through the third-party access rights to the telecom giant’s exchanges, causing the cost of international calls to plummet.

But whether breaking up the power monopoly, controlled by Hongkong Electric (SEHK: 0006) and CLP Power (SEHK: 0002), would go as smoothly seems unlikely, as studies have concluded.

The two utilities control the supply, distribution and services, leaving no niches for newcomers to the business. If they are paid compensation, the Hong Kong taxpayer would have to pick up the tab. Questions have been raised about how to regulate a power supplier operating from the mainland and whether, and how much, the power grid owner should be paid in compensation.

There was a failed attempt in 2008 when China Power International (SEHK: 2380) vowed to break the duopoly and to supply power to border areas; it dropped its plan because the government did not want to duplicate the supply network.

Officials will have to confront the issue as they have pledged to notify the power firms by the end of 2015 if they decide the market is ready for opening up after 2018, when the existing regulatory regime expires.

Then both sides must discuss the financial arrangements relating to assets and investment left redundant by opening up the market. Issues related to the future regulatory framework must also be decided.

Tang’s rival Leung Chung-ying said further study was needed.

“The most important [thing] is that the operator will have a reasonable return, and offer quality services at prices affordable to the public and businesses,” he said yesterday after the same forum.

A spokesman for the Environment Bureau yesterday said it was studying issues involved in reforming the market. The government has reportedly already appointed a consultant to study a range of issues, including how to introduce competition in the local market.

Dr William Yu Yuen-ping, the head of WWF Hong Kong’s climate programme, said the city could start tackling the issue by strengthening the interconnections between the two firms to minimise their reserve generating capacity, which was excessive.

Dr Billy Mak Shui-choi, of Baptist University’s department of finance, said any opening up should be cost-effective and not sacrifice the reliability of supply. He urged officials to learn the lessons of the power markets on the mainland and California, where either excessive regulation or fully liberalised markets have been cited as a cause of blackouts.